QUEENSLAND FLOODS - OPTUS NETWORK UPDATE, 11AM

As of 11am today, whilst there has been some localised impact to the Optus mobile and fixed network, Optus continues to deliver services to the majority of flood affected areas of Queensland and Northern New South Wales. Due to power outages, services are impacted to varying levels in five main areas: the South Brisbane and CBD; Toowoomba; Lockyer Valley, Ipswich; and Kilcoy. Where possible, we have deployed backup generators in accessible locations throughout the flood affected areas to allow us to respond to power outages. Optus engineers continue to closely monitor the network in Queensland to minimise any impact on our customers. Our priority is to keep services up and running in the Lockyer Valley area as much as possible to assist with the rescue efforts. We thank our customers for their continued patience and understanding. Brisbane In Brisbane, Optus is experiencing some disruption to its mobile and fixed network infrastructure in the CBD and South Brisbane areas due to the power outage. This has affected our Brisbane CBD transmission facility, resulting in the loss of some 2G and 3G mobile services in the area and some business services in the CBD. As network capacity has been prioritised for voice calls and SMS, mobile internet data is also slower than normal. There is a coverage overlap in most areas of Brisbane which will mitigate the loss of individual base stations. Ipswich In Ipswich, the power outages have impacted some nodes on our HFC network, affecting fixed home phone and internet services to approximately 7,000 residential customers. Due to the loss of power, four mobile sites servicing the North Ipswich area have gone down. Partial coverage is still available, supplemented by other towers in the surrounding area. Toowoomba In Toowoomba and the surrounding area, Optus has one mobile tower at Gunters Hill that is currently without power after Helidon was restored. However, partial coverage is still available in affected areas, supplemented by towers in the surrounding area. While Optus equipment at the Toowoomba exchange has not been affected, residential and business customers may experience a disruption to fixed services due to flood damage within their premises. Lockyer Valley Due to a loss of power at Mt Stradbroke, all mobile sites in the Lockyer Valley are relying on power generators so services continue to be intermittent. However, Optus engineers are on the ground to refuel generators to ensure partial services are up and running to assist with the rescue efforts. Optus is also investigating options to deliver additional mobile coverage into key areas in the Lockyer Valley. Kilcoy Due to the loss of power, the three Optus mobile sites servicing the Kilcoy area have gone down. Subsequently, mobile services in the Kilcoy area are currently unavailable. Optus engineers remain on standby in the area to deploy portable generators once access is possible. Sydney to Brisbane Links One of our Sydney to Brisbane links has experienced an optical fibre break in the Helidon area due to the floods. However, all protected services have been switched successfully to our coastal link, so residential and business customers have not been impacted. Optus technicians are currently on the ground to assess the damage. "We continue to monitor the situation closely. Should customers need to contact emergency services in the event of an Optus mobile service disruption, they can still call 000 from their Optus mobile as they will be switched to the nearest available mobile network," said Clare Gill, General Manager of Optus Government and Corporate Affairs. "Our thoughts are with all Queenslanders affected by this tragedy. Optus is doing its best to keep the network operational and minimise service disruption in the affected areas." For information on assistance which Optus is providing, please click here. Media contact: Kasia Ciszak /Joshua Drayton Optus Corporate Affairs Tel: (02) 8082 7850